ICYMI: Child Left In Feces-Laden, Roach-Infested Cobb Apartment While Mom Out Clubbing: Police

MARIETTA, GA -- A Cobb County woman was recently jailed after her child was found alone in filthy conditions at her apartment in Marietta, Patch has learned. The child, an 11-year-old girl, came to the attention of authorities when she knocked on the door of a neighbor and begged for food.

The incident happened July 22 about 7 p.m., according to news reports. The neighbor told local media that the child coming to his door was a clear attempt to get some help.

“It was pretty obvious, she wanted help. She wanted us to do something about it,” neighbor James Fisher told WXIA-TV. And do something about it is what Fisher did, giving the child some spaghetti and letting her play with his kittens. But by 2 a.m., with no sign of the mother, Fisher called police.

To make matters worse, the child told Fisher that her mom had was out "clubbing" -- partying the night away.
“It’s just unacceptable for a mother to do whatever she wants when she has a kid at home," he was quoted as saying.

But when authorities arrived at the apartment, what they saw took matters to a new level.

"The child was found in conditions, in a word, I can only say is deplorable," Marietta police Officer Phil McPhilamy told media outside the apartment. "Between roaches, other insects, mold and fungus, animal feces, no food inside the residence."

When Oats surfaced she admitted to authorities that she had been hanging out at a known drug house, which led police to call the Department of Family & Children's Services. The child is in their custody now, according to WSB-TV.

Fisher said that the girl is the most important factor in this incident and that this experience can hopefully be one she can grow from. "I hope that she can look back at this positively, as a maybe beneficial day in her life," Fisher told WSB.

Oats was held more than a week at the Cobb Detention Center on a charge of second-degree child cruelty, according to information from the Cobb Sheriff's Office.

Image via Cobb Sheriff's Office